Articles Due: March 31, 2025
Series Dates: April 21-25, 2025
Article Length: 1,500-3,000 words
Send To: [email protected].

By Dmitry Filipoff

The NATO alliance is facing an inflection point as the U.S. reconsiders its commitments. NATO navies must envision alternative futures where they may have to take on a much greater share of their collective defense. As the U.S. seeks a negotiated settlement to the war in Ukraine, NATO navies may have to brace for Russian threats on different terms.

How may NATO navies evolve in this changing context? How may threats from Russia in the maritime domain shift and present newfound challenges to NATO naval power? How can NATO navies strategize their roles in the Indo-Pacific and the Middle East amidst tensions with China and active combat operations in the Red Sea? Authors are invited to consider these questions and more as we consider the future of NATO’s naval power and maritime security.

Send all submissions to [email protected].

Dmitry Filipoff is CIMSEC’s Director of Online Content. Contact him at [email protected].

Featured Image: Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 ships and submarines sail in formation in the Ionian Sea off the coast of Sicily on February 21, 2022 during Exercise Dynamic Manta. (NATO photo) 

Responses Due: January 20, 2025
Special Series Dates: January 27-31, 2025
Response Length: 500 words
Send To: [email protected].

By Dmitry Filipoff

A new administration is assuming office in the U.S. amidst many national security challenges. What does the incoming administration need to know about the state of U.S. naval power and necessary enhancements to it? What should the administration prioritize for maritime strategy and great power competition with China? What problems and reforms are most deserving of urgent consideration? What could the administration do to increase allied contributions to maritime security and the naval balance of power? Authors are invited to send short responses of 500 words to be featured in a special series of notes to the new administration. Responses should focus strictly on naval, maritime, and national security affairs to be considered. Send all responses to [email protected].

(This is an independent CIMSEC initiative and is not being launched in partnership with any U.S. government entity.)

Dmitry Filipoff is CIMSEC’s Director of Online Content. Contact him at [email protected].

Featured Image: PHILIPPINE SEA (Dec. 7, 2024) – The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) transits the Philippine Sea. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Nate Jordan)

Stories Due: November 18, 2024
Week Dates: December 2-6, 2024
Story Length: 1,5000-3,000 Words
Submit to: [email protected]

By Dmitry Filipoff

Fiction has long served as a powerful means for exploring hypotheticals and envisioning alternatives. In annual tradition, CIMSEC will be running a series of short stories looking to explore the nature of conflict and competition through fiction. 

Authors can explore the future and flesh out concepts for how potential clashes and warfighting challenges may play out. They can probe the past, and use historical fiction to explore alternative histories. Authors are invited to craft gripping narratives that illuminate the unforeseen and carve realistic detail into visions of future conflict.

Send all submissions to [email protected].

For past CIMSEC Fiction Weeks, feel free to view our 2023, 2022, 2021, and 2020 fiction lineups.

Dmitry Filipoff is CIMSEC’s Director of Online Content. Contact him at [email protected].

Featured Image: Futuristic warship art generated by Midjourney AI. 

Articles Due: October 21, 2024
Topic Week Dates: November 11-15, 2024
Article Length: 1,500-3,000 Words
Submit to: [email protected]

By Dmitry Filipoff

PRC President Xi Jinping has instructed the People’s Liberation Army to be able to invade Taiwan by 2027. While this capability benchmark does not necessarily indicate a predetermined policy of invasion, it has served as a driving force behind the PLA’s rapid modernization. The 2027 date has also fueled intense speculation in the U.S. that war with China may only be a few years away.

But has this date crystallized the focus of the U.S. military as much as it has for the PLA? If senior leaders are genuinely concerned that war could be soon at hand, is the U.S. military truly acting like it, in terms of its operations, readiness, and sense of urgency? 

Authors are invited to submit analysis and recommendations on what the U.S. military and its allies can do in the near term to enhance readiness for war with China by 2027. How can the sense of urgency be more clearly communicated, and how can that urgency be more effectively translated into concrete changes to warfighting readiness? How can leaders across all levels take a hard look at their responsibilities and adapt for potentially looming war?

It is unclear to what extent the critical tension between near-term readiness and long-term modernization can be resolved within this short timespan. As the U.S. military struggled to break away from decades of short-term habits and thinking focused on low-end operations, China diligently maintained its focus on expansive modernization for the high-end fight. China has effectively stolen a march on the U.S. when it comes to military modernization, and has now achieved a level of capability that may leave the U.S. military believing it has little choice but to stay the course on near-term thinking. As the 2027 date looms, this disparity in generational strategic focus may come to a head, with potentially serious consequences for the rules-based order.

Send all submissions to [email protected].

Dmitry Filipoff is CIMSEC’s Director of Online Content. Contact him at [email protected].

Featured Image: PLA Navy Type-055 guided-missile destroyer Wuxi steams during a maritime training exercise. (eng.chinamil.com.cn/Photo by Wang Zezhou)